Featured Psychologist
Lillian Comas-Díaz, PhD, was born in Chicago, and later moved to her parents' native Puerto Rico when she was six years old. Feeling destined to be a psychologist, Comas-Diaz went on to pursue a graduate degree in Clinical Psychology at the University of Massachusetts. During her internship period, she developed community, education and media programs on antiracism, empowerment, cultural awareness and prevention. After receiving her master's degree, she relocated to Connecticut where she lent her services to local schools, neighborhood churches and under-resourced communities. She quickly recognized that the field of psychology was not adequately addressing the needs of underserved populations and decided to become an advocate for those communities. Comas-Diaz combined her professional, personal, and political experiences to develop a feminist liberation model.
When she began at the APA as the director of the Ethnicity, Race, and Cultural Affairs Portfolio (ERCA) in 1984, she quickly learned what was necessary to thrive in the world of psychology and politics. She saw that most issues, such as same-sex issues, public interest issues and minority issues are all interconnected. Comas- Díaz played a vital role in the founding of Div. 45 of the APA (Society for the Psychological Study of Culture, Ethnicity and Race). She later became Div. 45's first treasurer, and was the first editor-in-chief of its journal, Cultural Diversity and Mental Health. Still running successfully, the journal became a way for Comas- Díaz to share the division's interesting history and to write about culture and diversity issues. Psychologists of color like Comas-Diaz have played essential roles in the difficult transition towards a more inclusive and less ethnocentric field of psychology.
References
MacKay, J. (2010). Profile of Bonnie Stricklandopens in new window. In A. Rutherford (Ed.), Psychology's Feminist Voices Multimedia Internet Archive. Retrieved from https://feministvoices.com/profiles/bonnie-stricklandopens in new window
Young, J. L. (2010). Profile of Amy Tanneropens in new window. In A. Rutherford (Ed.), Psychology's Feminist Voices Multimedia Internet Archive. Retrieved from https://feministvoices.com/profiles/amy-tanneropens in new window